


Colors On My Skin

by SykoShadowRose



Series: Syko's 2020 Christmas Gift Collection [8]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, background characters mentioned - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:15:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28323708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SykoShadowRose/pseuds/SykoShadowRose
Summary: From the beginning Qrow was worried his soulmate would hate him, and from the beginning Clover only wanted to make sure his soulmate wa safe.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: Syko's 2020 Christmas Gift Collection [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2074167
Comments: 8
Kudos: 46





	Colors On My Skin

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ShadowCrusade](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowCrusade/gifts).



Qrow stared down at the bright green four-leaf clover innocently staining the soft inner skin of his right wrist. With how long it had taken his soulmark to appear compared to Raven and the other children in the tribe, he’d begun to believe his semblance had somehow stopped his from forming. Somehow this felt worse. _Was fate mocking him?_

Glaring at the small mark (he almost could have covered it with his thumb), Qrow ripped a strip off his shirt and tied it around his wrist to cover the mark. The last thing he needed was anyone mocking him for it. He’d keep it hidden. Let the other’s think that he either didn’t have one or that they’d already died. It was no one’s business but his own anyways.

After making sure that his wrist was properly covered, he trudged back to the camp, trying not to flinch when a few rope supports for the wall snapped and some timber fell. It wasn’t anything new anyways. The rest of the tribe should be used to it by now. As he went over to his little torn up tent in the back corner of the camp, he couldn’t help peeking under the band to see the completed mark around his wrist.

Within the safety of his flimsy shelter, Qrow took in the vivid green central clover, the shining silver horseshoes circling around his wrist and the gleaming gold betting coin spaced between , all with the winning side up. He wondered what it was in his soulmate’s life that made the mark so vibrant before those thoughts were chased away with questions of what mark he’d made on the other. Qrow frowned as he tied the strip back on, not wanting to think about how dark and dismal his colors must be. About how disappointed his _soulmate_ must be at being forced to wear them.

~*~

From the beginning, Clover worried about his soulmate.

The small shattered mirror that had formed on his left bicep was such a dark red, he’d thought it black. It wasn’t until his late teens that the mark hidden under his bandanna had lightened enough for him to realize the mirror was red and the pearls were supposed to be white. That the black feathers were supposed to have streaks of silver in them. The darkness of the shades was concerning, frightening in a way. He covered the mark with whatever he could when he went out.

It wasn’t because he was ashamed of the mark. It was because he wanted to protect whoever his soulmate was. He didn’t know who it was but he didn’t want anyone to know how dark their mark was. After all, the shade of a mark was an indication of your soulmate’s mood, their life. It was no one’s business but his and whoever wore his mark. Clover wondered what his mark looked like. If the other hated or resented him for how bright it must be. He put it out of his mind. They would understand. They were soulmates.

~*~

The first time Clover saw his soulmate was in a dream. There was a girl by his side, though he couldn’t see them well through the fire. He could see that they were standing in front of an older man, could tell that they were being sent off together somewhere but he couldn’t make out anything helpful for figuring out who he was or where he could find him. Clover woke up feeling so tired and grumpy that he didn’t even notice his parent’s confused looks when he told them about his dream.

~*~

The first time Qrow saw his soulmate it was in a reflection in the water of a river while making their way back from a mission. The angle was from behind, so Qrow had the perfect view to see it as a tall girl beside him slapped him solidly on the ass and set him jumping forward as a “volunteer” for something. He wasn’t able to see anything else as Raven flipped Tai over him and into the water, shattering the image. He huffed and complained the rest of the way back, missing the way the three shared bewildered looks at his ramblings. 

It wasn’t until after they’d gotten back to school that he learned what had happened wasn’t something that usually happened. He wondered what made him so different that he was allowed a glimpse of his soulmate.

~*~

Qrow was with Tai when it happened. He watched as Summer’s mark cracked, as it chipped off of his skin and crumbled into ash, leaving bare skin behind. He was there to catch the blond when he collapsed, the death of his soulmate shaking him to his core. It scared him to watch but he wouldn’t leave the other alone, not when he needed him. Not when there were two little girls that were going to have questions Tai wasn’t ready to answer. He’d figured out later, years and years later, that the reason he’d been granted a look at his soulmate was because he hadn’t met them yet even though he was long past the age where soulmates typically found each other. He wondered how much longer it would take, if he would even live long enough to met him.

~*~

Clover almost dreaded looking at the soulmark any time he took off his bandana. It was dark again, black against his skin, but what made him hesitate every night was that it was cracked more often than it was whole. His soulmate was either a huntsman who frequently took very dangerous jobs or he was suicidal. As awful as it was, Clover kind of wished it was the latter if only because he knew that his soulmate could be looked after better. Unfortunately he knew that the former was more likely and he felt a pit in his stomach every time he saw the mark crack, worried his soulmate might die before they ever met. He prayed his luck would keep the other alive long enough for them to have a chance, it was all he could do.

~*~

Qrow wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do. He’d gotten arrested with the kids, reunited with an old friend but before all of that, he’d felt it. The burn on his wrist. When he had a moment alone, he’d removed the black band, looking down at the CB that now laid over the clover on his wrist. Qrow had put the band back on, turning to go to the room he’d been offered but he froze, locking eyes with teal. His attention drifted down, to the now bared arm where a QB was inside a mirror. His lips pursed at the shade of his mark, wondering if there had ever been any color to it or if it had always been so dark. He blinked when he realized Clover had moved closer, had taken his wrist to peel back the band he’d just put back on so he could look at his own mark. Clover let out a heavy breath, relieved that his luck may have kept Qrow alive long enough for them to meet. He lifted the pale wrist, placing a kiss to the clover and held on, just feeling the pulse of blood that proved they’d made it. He felt Qrow’s other hand come up to rest over his heart. They’d need to talk, but not yet. Now, they needed to know that they’d _finally_ found each other.


End file.
